--Hustler wrote:Am I the one who thinks that Milk is a little bit conventional? Van Sant is far away from his artisitic contributions: Elephant and Paranoid Park.

yet he is also far from the mediocrity of his mainstream films like GOOD WILL HUNTING and FINDING FORESTER. i am glad van sant, like ang lee, were able to make a cinematically beautiful film which could find a mainstream audience without being cinematically inert.

Edited By OscarGuy on 1244860930

"When it comes to the subject of torture, I trust a woman who was married to James Cameron for three years."-- Amy Poehler in praise of Zero Dark Thirty director Kathryn Bigelow

How can you love someone romantically you can't relate to on an intelletcual level? Is it just for the sex?

I started to write a response before reading this. Sex and love are very complicated, Movielover. I think Milk's treatment of sexuality as something casual is one of the strongest facets of its filmmaking. If homosexuality - as Woody Allen said - was treated with the same sacrament as mating for life as pigeons and Catholics, it wouldn't be the portrait of American sexuality that it is.

I think you're supplanting your own values onto this film. Random girls have blow me at parties and I think I still deserve the same heterosexual rights as you do.

Edited By OscarGuy on 1244860947

"If you are marching with white nationalists, you are by definition not a very nice person. If Malala Yousafzai had taken part in that rally, you'd have to say 'Okay, I guess Malala sucks now.'" ~ John Oliver

I know many are hoping the film will assist in changing views on homosexuality, etc. but is it possible that some of the scenes could possibly support Anita Bryant's theories?

The night Milk wins the election, Cleve is giving a blowjob in the bathroom. When he comes up for air, the blowee pushes his head down - don't kiss me or show me any feelings of faux love...just suck my fuckin' cock is the caption there.

Scott Smith swims naked in a pool in front of those guys from The Advocate. Is this appropriate to "family-minded folk?" I'd hate for the answer to be, "he's gay - we all love cock, so what's the big deal?"

Milk takes in Diego Luna stating he clearly has no intellectual connection with him - I believe he even says to him. "I love you." How can you love someone romantically you can't relate to on an intelletcual level? Is it just for the sex?

Mind you, I AM NOT A SUPPORTER of Anita Bryant! And I get that this was simply depicting the reality of the period. But would these things have happened at a black victory, a women's victory? The gay culture has a stereotype for being permiscuous and it is up for debate whether or not that is merited. But could some of the scenes in this movie have unintentionally supported the views that the gay world is rife with superficiality, permiscuity, and hencefort, anti-family values?

Also, the fact that Milk only seems to like much younger men on his arm was unsettling for me. This superficial desire of his doesn't seem to go along with someone who was trying to be as, in a way, Messiah-like as Milk was. Does anyone know if he was a difficult person in any way?

I would think the fact that he only dates much younger men perhaps makes his character less appealing, as it honestly did to me.

one of the biggest surprise nominations for me was the costumes from MILK. MILK may be my favorite movie of the year, but i will never understand how its costumes were better than those in THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL or THE FALL.

however, i know many felt the nomination was very deserving. over at the advocate website, they have an interesting interview with danny glicker, the nominate designer.

--Hustler wrote:Very conventional film! A stereotyped biopic which lacks most of Van Sant´s artisitic initiatives seen in his latest films (Elephant; Paranoid Park). As for Penn´s performance I found him a little bit excessive. IMHO Franco gives the best performance.

i guess van sant actually wanted people to watch this film, as opposed to ignoring it like his more recent films. however, i am glad he actually decided to put some of his personal style in the film and not do another point-and-shoot job like GOOD WILL HUNTING.

Edited By OscarGuy on 1244860970

"When it comes to the subject of torture, I trust a woman who was married to James Cameron for three years."-- Amy Poehler in praise of Zero Dark Thirty director Kathryn Bigelow

--cam wrote:Had to go to town to see Milk today, but we did. Penn is amazing..if he doesn't win the Oscar I am never watching them again. Brolin was OK, but I think that Franco should have been nominated. Nice juxtaposition of television of the time. This film comes at exactly the right time for Californians who are horrified at Prop 8. Let us hope that enough of them vote for this film and stand up and be counted, as Milk would have wanted.

Cam, I couldn´t agree more!. Why had academy members snubbed Franco´s performance?. I haven´t seen any particular attraction in Brolin´s play, I mean, He´s accurate but nothing special. Could his nomination be read as a reward for his role in W?

Franco and Hirsch are the supporting standouts to me. Brolin did a great job, but I see this more as a nod to his great past couple of years.

Agree Flipp. Hirsch also delivers an interesting composition even though it seemed to me that he tried to copy the character in which his performance was based.

Sabin wrote:No, it is. It's totally conventional. The structure of this movie is totally similar to a thousand other films of its ilk. The difference being that this is one of the best in ages. It's beautifully acted and directed with such care that it doesn't feel conventional. But it is. The only thing unconventional is the subject matter and the way in which homosexual content is casually treated, which is to say deliberately so. These are shrewd decisions that result in a damn good movie but it's from the playbook.

I wonder if the reason that Milk is testing so low is because Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal are love-struck, beefcake gays, whereas Harvey is a middle-aged, nasal figure portrayed explicitly as having more than one relationship.

Agree Sabin! Very conventional film! A stereotyped biopic which lacks most of Van Sant´s artisitic initiatives seen in his latest films (Elephant; Paranoid Park). As for Penn´s performance I found him a little bit excessive. IMHO Franco gives the best performance.

cam wrote:Had to go to town to see Milk today, but we did. Penn is amazing..if he doesn't win the Oscar I am never watching them again. Brolin was OK, but I think that Franco should have been nominated. Nice juxtaposition of television of the time. This film comes at exactly the right time for Californians who are horrified at Prop 8. Let us hope that enough of them vote for this film and stand up and be counted, as Milk would have wanted.

Cam, I couldn´t agree more!. Why had academy members snubbed Franco´s performance?. I haven´t seen any particular attraction in Brolin´s play, I mean, He´s accurate but nothing special. Could his nomination be read as a reward for his role in W?

Franco and Hirsch are the supporting standouts to me. Brolin did a great job, but I see this more as a nod to his great past couple of years.

"The mantle of spinsterhood was definitely in her shoulders. She was twenty five and looked it."

cam wrote:Had to go to town to see Milk today, but we did. Penn is amazing..if he doesn't win the Oscar I am never watching them again. Brolin was OK, but I think that Franco should have been nominated. Nice juxtaposition of television of the time. This film comes at exactly the right time for Californians who are horrified at Prop 8. Let us hope that enough of them vote for this film and stand up and be counted, as Milk would have wanted.

Cam, I couldn´t agree more!. Why had academy members snubbed Franco´s performance?. I haven´t seen any particular attraction in Brolin´s play, I mean, He´s accurate but nothing special. Could his nomination be read as a reward for his role in W?

Had to go to town to see Milk today, but we did. Penn is amazing..if he doesn't win the Oscar I am never watching them again. Brolin was OK, but I think that Franco should have been nominated. Nice juxtaposition of television of the time. This film comes at exactly the right time for Californians who are horrified at Prop 8. Let us hope that enough of them vote for this film and stand up and be counted, as Milk would have wanted.